It was known to install and execute a variety of computer software programs, such as operating systems, applications and middleware on a computer or on a logical partition (LPAR) of a computer. An LPAR is a simulated division of computer resources, such as processor(s) and memory, of a real computer to create what appear to be separate computers for programs executing in each LPAR. For example, different subsets of the total processors of the real computer can be allocated to different LPARs, or different time slices of a single processor can be allocated to different LPARs. The software programs(s) on each LPAR utilize the real resources allocated to their LPAR.
Typically, software vendors license software programs to organizations, such as a business or government, and charge the organizations monthly or yearly software license fees. The instruments used to license the software programs are called software licenses, and the software licenses generally have restrictions on usage that include the number of copies of the software programs that may be installed, and the number of computers on which the software programs may be installed. Thus, the software license fees may be set based on the restrictions on usage that are in the software licenses. In addition, software vendors may impose penalties if an organization is non-compliant with the software licenses. Hence, a common challenge organizations encounter is how to comply with their software licenses.
In addition, it was known for an organization to decommission a software program or consolidate the software program, installed on a computer or a LPAR, onto a different computer or a different LPAR to stay in compliance with a software license and reduce software license fees. However, large organizations often lack an efficient way to generate reliable software and hardware usage data (i.e., data indicating actual usage) on all their enterprise software and legacy systems.
Moreover, an organization's non-compliance with their software licenses typically results in part from the organization not having access to data that indicates the number of software licenses they have purchased, persons or entities entitled to utilize the software programs pursuant to the licenses, and whether the persons or entities are utilizing the software licenses in a way that is in accord with software entitlements rules. Under many existing software licenses, the software license fees can be reduced by consolidating different copies of a software program on a single real computer or LPAR. But there may be factors that influence options for consolidating other than immediate cost as determined by a license fee calculation.
Current software reporting programs provide information on installed software programs and utilization of the installed software programs within a networked computing environment, and can even determine whether an organization is in compliance with terms and conditions of their software licenses. However, the current software reporting programs do not have an effective method for determining options for decommissioning or consolidating the software programs. Thus, the challenge of creating a software reporting program that determines options for decommissioning or consolidating a software programs, in order to reduce software license fees and satisfy other customer needs in the short and long term, continues to persist.